Crusher separator apparatus and method



26, 1969 J. F. CONEYBEAR ET AL 3,463,311

CRUSHER SEPARATOR APPARATUS AND METHOD Filed Nov. 7, 1967 United StatesPatent 3,463,311 CRUSHER SEPARATOR APPARATUS AND METHOD J. FrankConeyhear, Rockville, Md., Charles H. Chandler, Princeton, N.J., andJohn J. Andrisin, Jr., Parma Heights, Ohio, assignors, by mesneassignments, to Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., Hanson, Mass., acorporation of Massachusetts Filed Nov. 7, 1967, Ser. No. 681,154 Int.Cl. B07c; B07b 13/10 U.S. Cl. 209-73 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSUREThis invention relates to separating and grading of vegetable material,particularly cranberries, preparatory to its use in the preparation ofindustrial food products and is concerned more particularly withsalvaging firm unbroken cranberries which have obstinately refused tosuccumb to other separating and grading operations and hence stillremain unseparated from soft, infirm, or broken berries.

Oftentimes there are only a few unseparated firm berries in a large bulkof previously separated and graded material, but their recovery is stilleconomically desirable if it can be accomplished with a high percentageof recovery.

To this end, this invention takes advantage of the bouncecharacteristics of the desired firm cranberries and the strength of theberry shell and subjects the whole bulk to crushing pressure by a meanswhich will not crush the firm berries but which will crush the remainingmaterial and then propels the whole bulk against a bounce board targetfrom which the firm bounceable berries bounce in one general directionand from which unbouncing material is conveniently removed in anothergeneral direction.

The crushing means comprise a pair of opposed movable surfaces,preferably rolls, mounted for rotation on horizontal parallel axes,which form a passageway through which the bulk material is passed at asufiicient velocity to propel it as it emerges with sufiicient forceagainst the target to bounce the firm berries, but not unduly splash thesofter material.

The bounce board is inclined to the path of the propelled material andmay be conveniently formed by an endless conveyor belt, whichcontinuously moves through the target area in an upward inclineddirection to carry the material collecting on the conveyor surface outof the target area and to permit the harder berries to bounce due to theinclination of the target in a downward direction towards and oif thelower end of the conveyor for removal.

Apparatus for performing the separation contemplated by this inventionis shown in the accompanying diagrammatic drawing wherein there is aninput feed belt at the top of the apparatus which carries cranberrydiscard from a previous separation operation that has removed most ofthe whole unbroken cranberries, but still contains some firm, highgrade, whole berries which somehow have survived previous operations.

A spreader 12 having brush-like flexible tongues may be added when underfull load on fluctuating input and serves to spread the material into afairly even uniform layer which is discharged off the end of theconveyor on top of a double bank of opposed crushing rolls 16, 17 and18, 19 supported in tandem vertical relation and mounted on parallelhorizontal axes and forming a succession of nips through which thematerial is passed with a trajectory which assures that the materialfalls between the converging moving surfaces of rolls 16 and 17.

The rolls are faced with compressible material which can be, forexample, a surface layer of polyethylene closed cell foam having adensity which will not crush the good berries, backed up by a firmerlayer of vinyl foam, for example, rollers having a 21% inch diameter mayhave the outer polyethylene layer about 1% inches thick and theunderlying vinyl layer about 1 inch thick.

Each of the pairs of rolls is subject to adjustment towards and awayfrom each other and while they may not actually contact each other, itis preferred that in operation they do contact each other as reliance isplaced upon the compressibility of the foam material not to crush thefirm berries but to crush less firm materials dependent upon thepressures used. Normally, with the above compressible surfacing, goodoperation has been obtained by setting 21% inch diameter rolls in theupper bank on 21% inch centers and in the bottom bank on 21% inchcenters, though it is contemplated that different settings for the topand lower rolls may be used, for example, a somewhat smaller setting onthe lower rolls to give slightly increased pressure on the second nip.It will be understood that opposed belts may be substituted for therolls. Motor M is shown as driving only one roll of each pair, but itwill be understood that rolls 16 and 18 may also be positively driven,particularly if it is desired to operate with minute gaps at one or bothof the nips.

Pairs of scrapers or wipers 20 are associated with both pairs of rollsbeneath the respective nips so as to direct the passing materialdownwardly and clean the roll surfaces.

The rolls may be operated, for example, at a speed of 500 or more feetper minute with the result that the material is forcibly ejecteddownwardly towards an underlying belt conveyor 30 which has an upwardlyinclined path of movement at an angle dependent upon its adjustment invertical stanchions 31 about a lower pivot support 33'. Most of thestream of material collects on the conveyor 30 and is carried up anddischarged off the end of the conveyor into a bin 34 with the conveyorbelt 30 being cleaned by a scraper 32 for the next revolution.

The firm berries, on the other hand, bounce, on impact on the conveyor30 and, due to the angle of incidence, take flight in one or morebounces to the left as seen in the drawing off the bottom end of theconveyor 30 where they may be spray washed as from a bank of nozzles 40and collected on a cross-conveyor 50'.

By the above means, a very speedy and efiicient recovery of good qualityberries may be secured from a large bulk of material in a short timewhile insuring by crushing adjustment of the rolls that damaged berrieswill not retain any suflicient amount of bounce, but will rather be socrushed that they no longer bounce as discrete particles and thereforeare delegated to being retained on the conveyor and removed upwardlywith the discard material.

As will be understood, in some cases the foregoing crusher separator maybe used prior to other separation procedures in order to rid thematerial of cranberries which are defective due to frost, but normallyit is contemplated that crusher separation will be utilized only afterother pre-separation procedures have been used.

3 We claim: 1. Apparatus for recovering and separating discrete,relatively firm vegetable particles from an admixture thereof withrelatively softer material comprising a pair of opposed movable elementsmounted for movement through paths forming a nip therebetween,

said elements having compressible surfaces resiliently yieldable to passsaid firmer particles through said nip without crushing the same,

means for moving said elements to pass said admixture through said nipwith said firmer elements being maintained uncrushed and forceablypropel said admixture away from said nip,

an inclined target surface spaced from said elements and intersectingthe path of said admixture after it is propelled away from said nip,

means for moving said surface continuously through the target zone andupwardly of said inclination to convey the portion of said admixturewhich is intercepted by and collects on said inclined surface upwardlyin one direction, separated from firmer particles of said admixturewhich due to the angle of incidence bounce off said surface in adownward direction, and

means for collecting particles of said admixture which bounce off of andare not moved upwardly on said conveying surface.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said target surface is asurface of an endless conveyor belt and wherein said apparatus has meansfor continuously removing material collecting on said endless belt fromsaid belt during movement of said belt through a portion of its pathbeyond said target zone.

3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 having additional opposed movableelements having compressible surfaces supported in tandem relation withsaid pair of opposed movable elements and forming an advance nip throughwhich said material passes before it passes through the succeeding nipof said pair of elements.

4. The method of separating and recovering discrete relatively firmbounceable vegetable particles from an admixture thereof with relativelysofter material comprising exerting crushing pressure on a continuouslyadvancing bulk of the admixture at a value less than the pressurerequired to crush the firmest particles in said admixture and propellingthe admixture against a bounce board target surface angularlyintersecting the path of said propelled admixture to bounce theuncrushed particles in one general direction determined by the angle ofinclination of the target area of the bounce board surface, and

continuously carrying the softer remainder of the admixture whichcollects on said surface generally in another direction out of thetarget zone of the bounce board surface, and

continuously separately collecting particles bounced off said surfaceand the said soft remainder.

s 5. The method claimed in claim 4 wherein suflicient crushing pressureis exerted on said particles in the nip between two opposed rolls tocrush the uniform berries and not to crush the firm berries and therolls move at a speed suflicient to propel said firmer particles as theyemerge from between said rolls toward said bounce board surface with avelocity sulficient to cause them to bounce out of the target area ofsaid bounce board surface but at avelocity less than that which wouldcause any substantialportion of the softer components of said materialto splash ofif said bounce board surface.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5 wherein the bounce board surfacecontinuously moves through the path of said admixture to carry thesofter remainder out of the target zone.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 263,542 8/1882 Leland 209-119 X1,132,011 3/1915 Horst 209-119 X 1,321,201 11/1919 Young 209-119 X2,802,471 8/ 1957 Heitmann 209-119 X ALLEN N. KNOWLES, Primary ExaminerUS. Cl. X.R. 209-119 g UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OFCORRECTION Patent: No. 3 H63 3] l Dated August. 26 19 9 Inventor) Franz'Tfincj/bcaP etal It is certified that error appears in theabove-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are herebycorrected as shown below:

11m: i8, change "unifcrm" to unfir-m--.

1 umn I;

Adj SEALED (SEAL) Attest:

Edward M. Fletcher, 1 E. 60 I m.

Attesting Officer mlflaioner of Patents

